Brett Hundley trying to navigate ‘stepping stones’

As the week started anew, UCLA’s quarterback prepared to shoulder the blame.

Brett Hundley had come off arguably the worst showing of his career, passing for 64 yards Saturday in a 42-14 loss at No. 2 Oregon.

So much for Heisman dark horse and future first-round pick. That talk won’t happen until Hundley starts shining in these big games, ones he described as “stepping stones.”

The quarterback didn’t go into detail about what when wrong when he met with media on Monday, but mostly pointed inward.

Was the playbook limiting, the one that rarely ventured past swing passes and draw plays?

“Whatever play is called, as long as we execute it, anything is possible,” Hundley said. “Obviously, we’re going to get back to what we normally do. I believe whatever play (offensive coordinator Noel) Mazzone calls can work as long as we execute it on the field.”

And what about that offensive line — the one missing two starting tackles, plus a backup?

“It’s a difficult point, but I believe the offensive line did a great job at Oregon,” Hundley said. “They’ve consistently done a great job. There are some times where I’ve just got to step up, make somebody miss, keep my eyes downfield. I take responsibility on that.”

At this point, the latter issue can only get better, particularly as the schedule lightens against Colorado this weekend. Scott Quessenberry became the 18th true freshman to play for UCLA (5-2, 2-2 Pac-12) this season, and was among six that started in Eugene. Starting at left guard for Xavier Su’a-Filo — who moved to left tackle — Quessenberry drew on his background at multiple positions to effectively communicate with center Jake Brendel.

Also UCLA’s No. 2 center, he played both right tackle and left tackle at La Costa Canyon High in north San Diego County. If tackle Simon Goines (MCL) doesn’t return soon, Quessenberry provides some hope for consistency on the offensive line.

“Especially going silent count in a hostile environement like Autzen Stadium, it’s really important that the guard be the center’s eyes,” he said. “I think Jake’s comfortable with me doing that.”

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

All-American Anthony Barr said he gained extra respect for Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota. Regarded widely as the Heisman frontrunner, the redshirt sophomore took his blows and jumped back up.

“I think people don’t give him enough credit for his toughness and his competitiveness,” Barr said of Mariota. “There were a couple of plays where he got hit probably late. I think the one, Jordan (Zumwalt) hit him on the sidelines, and he was actually telling the ref, ‘Don’t throw the flag. That was clean.’

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“It’s cool to hear from quarterbacks. Usually, they’re the ones complaining the most.”

Not only did Mariota not complain, he tapped Zumwalt on the helmet in what appeared to be a congratulatory gesture — a bit of reverse-gamesmanship.

Similar start

Freshman nose tackle Kenny Clark earned the first start of his career Saturday night at Oregon, but didn’t see a noticeable uptick at around 30 reps. The Bruins usually rotate in several defensive linemen, and also used several different looks to try and limit the Ducks’ zone read.

Barr effectively moved down to play right defensive end on several snaps.

“I think I got the same amount of snaps I got at any other game,” said Clark, who played at Carter High in Rialto. “This game (against Colorado), we’ll probably be running a lot more of our base packages. I think I’ll play a lot more.”